Auburn will play either host Colorado or Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the second round Saturday.

BOULDER, Colo. - The Auburn women's basketball team heads back out on the road this week for its second tournament of the season at the 26th Annual Omni Hotels Classic in Boulder, Colo. The tournament is hosted by the University of Colorado and also includes San Diego State and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.

The Tigers (3-1) will take on San Diego State (2-1) at 6 p.m. CT, Friday and will face either the Buffaloes or Islanders on Saturday.

The Last Meeting

Auburn

55

San Diego State

66

December 30, 2009
San Diego, Calif.

Auburn Falls 66-55 At San Diego State In Surf `N Slam Championship
Trailing by 15 points in the second half, the Auburn women's basketball team (9-4) clawed back to within six points but would get no closer as the Tigers fell 66-55 in the Surf `N Slam Classic to host San Diego State (8-4). Redshirt junior Jordan Greenleaf led Auburn with 15 points and eight rebounds in the game, collecting four steals along the way.

The road trip comes after a pair of dominating home performances over Alabama State and Alabama A&M. The Tigers won the two games by an average of 43 points each, including a 93-point effort against the Bulldogs on Sunday.

"Sunday was good. I was impressed with our scoring, scoring 93 points, but we took good shots and had a high percentage," said Auburn head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy. "We were not just standing out there jacking up 3s, we were actually running our offense, getting high-percentage shots."

For the fourth game in a row, the Tigers forced more than 20 turnovers. Auburn also scored a season-high 34 points off turnovers.

"We have to be able to force teams into turnovers," said Williams-Flournoy. "You are making it difficult for them to run their offense, forcing them into uncomfortable conditions and it gives us another opportunity to push and score in transition."

Auburn will head into a tournament situation for the second time this season. The Colorado tournament follows a runner-up finish at the start of the season at the Sheraton Raleigh Wolfpack Invitational. Williams-Flournoy believes that this experience, with the quick turnaround, is beneficial to the team down the road.

"You just want to teach the players to be able to play for something so that when you go to these tournaments, you want to win the first game because you want to play in the championship game," said Williams-Flournoy. "It just gets us ready to always prepare yourself for the championship game, whether it is the SEC Tournament, NCAA Tournament, whatever it is, you are preparing yourself to win."

San Diego State is 2-1 so far on the season. The Aztecs opened the season with a 66-52 loss to UCLA, but have bounced back for wins over California-Irvine (63-53) and California State-Dominguez Hills (66-30).

SDSU returns four starters and nine letterwinners from last year's team that went 25-6 and won the Mountain West Conference. The Aztecs advanced to the NCAA Tournament, losing to LSU 64-56 in the first round.

"San Diego State is doing really well," said Williams-Flournoy. "They had a tough game against UCLA, one that they could have and maybe should have won. They are playing really well, their guards are very good and can score off the bounce. It is going to be a tough game for us."

San Diego State is led by senior Courtney Clements with 14.3 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. Also averaging double figures is Erimma Amarikwa with 11.7 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds per game.

"Courtney Clements is a tough matchup to guard," said Williams-Flournoy. "She can score off the bounce, in transition, and she pushes the ball hard in transition. If you don't stop the ball, she won't stop herself. She runs the team, she gets to the offensive glass, she is just a really good player for them."

Tipoff Friday is set for 6 p.m. CT from the Coors Events Center in Boulder, Colo. Auburn and San Diego State will play in the opener with host Colorado and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi facing off in the second game.

Live stats will be available at CUBuffs.com. Tiger fans can listen to the game live on WMXA 96.7 FM and AuburnTigers.com with play-by-play from Andy Burcham.